Cheers all round as track and jockey suit Nikody at tamworth

NIKODY surged home down the middle of a track he likes with a jockey he runs well for to win yesterday’s $15,000 Freight Specialists Benchmark 60 Handicap (1600m) at Tamworth.

The Bindi Cheers-owned-and-trained three-year-old gelding was having his third start at Tamworth and his narrow win from Greg Bennett’s Shocking Behaviour was his second success at Tamworth.

He also ran second in the Romantic Dream 2YO Plate as a juvenile.

“He likes the track,” Cheers said.

“He likes Matty (jockey Matthew Paget). Goes well for him.”

Paget said Nikody raced well for a change yesterday.

“He’s been out of form,” Paget said.

“I’ve won a couple on him now.

“When he’s right he goes well. Bindi has done a good job to get him back right too.”

Cheers said the son of Bel Danoro is “too quiet”.

“On his day he’s a good little horse,” Cheers said.

“But he’s just too quiet. He’s a stable favourite, a real softie.”

Cheers has “half a dozen in work” at Taree where she and husband, Peter Cheers, prepare her small but strong stable.

“He (Peter) does all the work,” she said.

They own and race all their own horses to great effect up and down the eastern seaboard and inland to venues such as Tamworth.

They will be at Walcha next Friday and Saturday as well, trying to land more success at the Walcha Jockey Club’s annual two-day Cup Carnival.

Walcha trainer George Woodward yesterday said the track had received good rain in the past week or so and would be a perfect racing surface as long as it doesn’t receive any more.

Nominations for Walcha close at 11am Monday. Feature race Friday is the $35,000 Walcha Cup (1440m) with major support races in the $27,000 Graziers Handicap and the $25,000 Ron Martin Memorial Maiden Handicap.